AmandaNYC

Program and Casting Subject to Change *First time in role +Guest Artist # SAB Student MAY 13-18, 2003 TUESDAY EVENING, MAY 13 AT 7:30PM [Kaplow] Swan Lake: Odette/Odile: SOMOGYI Pr. Siegfried: MARTINS Von Rothbart: la COUR WEDNESDAY EVENING, MAY 14 AT 7:30PM - GALA Guide to Strange Places (New Martins - Preview): *KISTLER, *WEESE, *SOMOGYI, *ANSANELLI, *TAYLOR, *SOTO, *NEAL, *MARTINS, *MILLEPIED, *MARCOVICI Intermission Carnival of the Animals (New Wheeldon #1): *LITHGOW+, *VERHOEST#, *ASKEGARD, *NICHOLS, *FAYETTE, *BORREE, *RUTHERFORD, *van KIPNIS, *HIGGINS, *REDPATH+ [Grant, Walters] THURSDAY EVENING, MAY 15 AT 8:00PM Hallelujah Junction: TAYLOR, MARCOVICI, MILLEPIED [Grant, Moredock] Intermission Symphony in Three Movements: WHELAN, van KIPNIS, A. STAFFORD, EVANS, GOLD, HIGGINS Intermission Guide to Strange Places: KISTLER, WEESE, SOMOGYI, ANSANELLI, TAYLOR, SOTO, NEAL, MARTINS, MILLEPIED, MARCOVICI FRIDAY EVENING, MAY 16 AT 8:00PM [Kaplow] Donizetti Variations: BORREE, HÜBBE [Grant, Moredock] Intermission Agon: KOWROSKI, SOTO, BOAL, McBREARTY, HANSON, SOMOGYI, HANNA, FOWLER Intermission Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2: WHELAN, TEWSLEY, TBA, TINSLEY, RUTHERFORD, TBA [Walters] SATURDAY, MAY 17 AT 2:00PM [Quinn] Carnival of the Animals: LITHGOW+, VERHOEST#, ASKEGARD, NICHOLS, FAYETTE, BORREE, RUTHERFORD, van KIPNIS, HIGGINS, REDPATH+ [Grant, Walters] Intermission Sinfonia: MARCOVICI, KÖRBES; TAYLOR, FAIRCHILD [Grant, Nikkanen] Pause Concerto Barocco: BORREE, SOMOGYI, FAYETTE [Delmoni, Ingraham] Intermission Symphony in Three Movements: WHELAN, van KIPNIS, A. STAFFORD, EVANS, GOLD, HIGGINS SATURDAY, MAY 17 AT 8:00PM Guide to Strange Places: KISTLER, WEESE, SOMOGYI, ANSANELLI, TAYLOR, SOTO, NEAL, MARTINS, MILLEPIED, MARCOVICI Intermission Concerto Barocco: BORREE, SOMOGYI, FAYETTE [Delmoni, Ingraham] Pause Sonatas & Interludes: KOWROSKI, SOTO [Chelton] Intermission Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2: WHELAN, TEWSLEY, TBA,TINSLEY, RUTHERFORD, TBA [Walters] SUNDAY, MAY 18 AT 3:00PM [Quinn] Donizetti Variations: BORREE, HÜBBE Intermission Carnival of the Animals: LITHGOW+, VERHOEST#, ASKEGARD, NICHOLS, FAYETTE, BORREE, RUTHERFORD, van KIPNIS, HIGGINS, REDPATH+ [Grant, Walters] Intermission Agon: KOWROSKI, SOTO, BOAL, McBREARTY, HANSON, SOMOGYI, HANNA, FOWLER

Casting for today's matinee, which I attended (so can type from the program-- will do the same for tomorrow's): Koworoski, Askegard, Seth cast Benno: Hanna pas de trois with him: Rutherford, Natanya Jester: Hendrickson Queen: Muller four swans: Barak, Fairchild, Mandradjieff, Walker 6 princesses: Abergel, Arthurs, Bar, Hankes, Hanson, Keenan pas de quatre: Borree, Riggins, Taylor, Millepied Hungarian: Ash, la Cour Russian: Ansanelli, Martins (while i am refraining from commenting on this performance until i have seen others, I did want to note Ansanelli's performance here: she is no little girl anymore! she was sultry in just the right way :-) ) Spanish: Beskow & Fowler, McBrearty and J. Stafford Neopolitan: Fairchild, Gold btw, is Bouder still out (i.e., does amanda have another season of pining to see her dance)?

Me, again. Signed posters and toe shoes by Darci Kistler have been added. Also, I continue to urge you to bid on the lunch with the NYCB dancers. A rare opportunity to talk to them in a relaxed setting while also donating to a great cause. -amanda

The lunch with Amanda Edge and Antonio Carmena and the autographed Our Meals book have been relisted. Please note that the meal for 4 has been donated by the restaurant, so the auction cost includes both great company and great food... and a great cause! -amanda

One more thing... Please keep checking the page, as we shall be adding additional items as we obtain them! -amanda

Also posted in the Announcements forum, but posting here so NYCB fans don't miss it: As I posted awhile ago, I am on the NYCB AIDS Walk Team committee. To help, you can walk with us or donate... as well as bid on some *items*, including lunch with 2 NYCB dancers! So, you can get something for yourself by also doing some good! Not bad. I told the committee that the Ballet Talkers wouldn't let us down and would be among the bidders-- hope I'm not wrong. NYCB AIDS Walk Team Homepage Links from there to the Ebay bidding. THANKS! -amanda

Let's not forget that the loudness of applause and cheering is not a perfect reflection of an audience's appreciation of a ballet. Some ballets end on a very energetic note that seems to send energy right to the audience's hands and mouths! Also, some performances by the dancers seem to almost demand a huge response-- Chiaroscuro was made on Jock Soto-- he doesn't have one tailor-made for him by Balanchine. Regardless of your opinion of the ballet, Jock is certainly shown off to great effect. Other ballets leave you with a subdued, content feeling, but no less happy to have seem them. That's why a balanced program is a good thing. Even if I love most performance-ending ballets, I really don't like it when they schedule more than one of them in a performance (e.g., final NYCB this winter with WC 1st and I'm Old Fashioned last). Also, at every performance of Balanchine's Who Cares? and Symphony in C I go to (incl. this season), the audience still erupts. Those ballets call for it a lot. -amanda

I was at that performance, and it was Somogyi in one her usually fantastic 1st mov't performances. While I did not think Kistler turned in the same kind of performance she has even in recent years, it still moved me. I still it think it one of the only things I want to see her do until her retirement. Maybe I just was too rapt to notice the details. I guess I should be grateful for that! As far as the Wheeldon piece goes... strangely it has grown on me. 3 times I have seen it. Maybe now that I know what to expect, I can enjoy what's good in it, and not focus on what I don't like (the contrived arm mov'ts). I agree with Manhattnik about Wheeldon still throwing too many *neat* things into his pieces. One of the revelatory ballet quotes for me was Balanchine's about choreographing Apollo-- how he realized he dare not do everything (what's the exact quote?). Wheeldon still has yet to learn that. As it is, each piece is radically different, allowing him to explore different moods and music. Within his pieces, he needs to stay more focused. Not throw in every idea he has. The pas de deux has about every possible romantic swoon in it (thankfully Ansanelli's performance distracts me from that while I watch). I am still missing a coherent whole, recurring themes of mov't (other than the aforementioned contrived arm movements-- what's with the movements that seem like the girls are rocking a baby-- i know i am missing something). Thankfully, Wheeldon knows how to use the stage and, especially, his dancers extremely well. I agree with Manhattnik. I grow to appreciate Ansanelli more and more when I watch her in a Wheeldon piece. -amanda

Besides Ash, how were the other soloist females making their debuts? -amanda

Isn't it a stagehand union thing that makes them try to end things before 11pm? 11pm+ leads to OT pay, doesn't it? I know I haven't posted much lately (I think I have caught every bug going around NYC this winter... spring cannot come soon enough), but last night (sat) was just the medicine I needed. From Somogyi's utterly gorgeous Barocco (I'm less surprised by Somogyi not doing the 1st violin as I am by her not being given Square Dance to perform) to Ulbricht's go for broke approach and sheer joy, I had was on a high all evening (well, I did sit out Reliquary). I enjoyed Fairchild in Tarantella, although she doesn't quite seem ready to dance with the abandon and fun the female needs to even come close to *rivaling* the male. But, she does have a solid technique and charm. And, great, intelligent eyes. The one negative for the night (I draw a blank on Borree's Barocco) was that I desperately miss Ashley Bouder. At times like watching Tarantella, I feel almost pained by not getting to see her in the role. Tarantella has her name written all over it. Not just for the technique, but for the musicality that would end up sending chills up the audience's spine. I so wish I could have seen her in Saratoga do the role. I have to overcome my prejudices when watching Fairchild, as she is being given roles that Bouder has and would have done. It is a tribute to Fairchild's talent that I could still enjoy her performance. But, still, please, oh, please, let Bouder be back in the Spring. This was my first time viewing Carousel (which I saw, again, this afternoon in a ballet replacement). As I have mentioned before on this board re: *modern* ballets, I have major issues with modern dance arms movements seemingly thrown in for no reason into modern ballets. I just find it contrived and distracting. That said, I was in the mood for the swooning and swooning and swooning of the pas de deux and adored Ansanelli's complete abandon in the part. As already mentioned above, both Taylor and Ansanelli dance with much abandon, but somehow, as oxymoronic as this sounds, Ansanelli's abandon in this piece seemed perfectly in control. I didn't fear she'd get hurt, as I often do with Taylor (who did take a spill in Sinfonia on Friday night). Corps-wise, there were many replacements (as in Symp. in C today), and Sterling Hyltin (one of the unlisted replacements) stood out for the passion in her dancing (she was the small blonde with wavy/curly-ish hair. My eyes kept finding her. Programming-wise, I think putting Barocco, Tarantella, and Carousel all on together before a full intermission was just too much. I felt utterly overwhelmed (one of the reasons I sat out the 2nd act). Too much to process. Too little time to relish the previous performance. As cargill (I think) said to me, they could have had the intermission after Barocco and done without Reliquary (and, perhaps, kept the soloist sections of WC). Now, WC.... After my highs of last season of the Hubbe/Ringer/Somogyi/Taylor cast, I didn't dare hope of reaching similar heights. But, boy I was wrong. Askegard was charming and graceful at the same time. I'm a sucker for Hubbe, so I still missed him. But, this performance belonged to the women. While Apollo is in charge in that piece, the lead male in this performance of definitely was 2nd fiddle (4th fiddle?) to his 3 ladies. Time stops in the Man I Love with Ringer. I wanted to cry out-- it was almost painful, in a way, at how exquisite she was... that such beauty exists just for a few ephemeral moments (or minutes). I wish I could bottle those moments (well, I'd be happy with a video of the perf). And, of course, Ringer is a sex kitten in Fascinatin' Rhythm. Going back to the Man I Love... it's one of my faves, if not my favorite pas de deux. When done superbly (as it was at this perf.), it's more sexy and heartbreaking than any scene I have seen in a movie. I know spouses and SOs often get jealous seeing their loved ones in movie love scenes. I'd be jealous watching my loved one in the Man I Love. Fortunately, my high did not end with Ringer. van Kipnis was the best I have seen her in this role... and now my favorite in this role ever. She was an independent woman, while still maintaining a feminine, sexy air. Somogyi... She's not a *personality* dancer, but she connects with the audience and her partner, all the same. The way she uses her neck, shoulders, and upper back (in whatever she does, really) reveals a vulnerability that, combined with her power, makes her completely captivating to me. She was rightly brought out for an extra bow, after her solo (though I thought they all deserved it). The finale, as already mentioned, was incredibly fast, certainly ending the ballet with a big pow. wow. -amanda

I know that there are many ballets where young corps members have gotten to dance perhaps too early, but I don't think this has happened in Barocco in the 10+ years I've been watching the company. Maybe one or two young corps girls were thrown in (understudies for an injured senior corps members probably), but I can't remember a time when it wasn't senior members. Again, there are definitely other ballets where we might have craved more experienced corps members, but I do think Barocco has still retained a special stature. -amanda

Glad to be of service (well, glad my sis could be of service), Leigh. As far as the start time, I don't know how my sis knew, but she had told me the performance was at 6:30pm. Did the cocktail reception start at 6pm? Not good that the actual scheduled start time was not well publicized. I enjoyed Company B, though I have seen much better performances. Two of the men seemed to be loosing steam toward the end of their solos. They lost the umph. I found the Back piece intriquing. Not being that familiar with Taylor work, I was fortunate not to see echoes of other works (unlike Leigh). Instead I heard echoes of other ballet music, e.g., the final section of Episodes (thanks, Leigh. It would have driven me mad had you not told me!). I'm not a big fan of Taylor's typical use of the dancers to wipe the floor (can you tell my feelings?), so those parts of this piece bothered me. I think I would have preferred to see have seen the piece from further away (we were in row F), as there were a lot of bodies doing a lot of movement on a small stage. -amanda

I also saw Ashley do the McBride role in Who Cares? Again, not the right role for her, but she was far from terrible. Back to Ringer. I adore her, but I also do not think her suited to Bizet 1st mov't. She might not be tall enough to be cast in it, but I think she is a 2nd mov't dancer. None of these are castings from "hell" exactly. My true most recent true experience of that was Borree in Square Dance. -amanda

Playbill online has an offer of discounted seats for the first two weeks of rep. $40 instead of $48 for third ring and $17 instead of $30 for fourth ring C-O. It's free to join the Playbill Club. Start at: Playbill Online -amanda

According a headline on the NYCB website yesterday (though I can't find any other info. about it), Kipling Houston is retiring after the 1/8 performance. -amanda

I just reviewed what my wish list was, and realized that some of my wishes had come true-- and without disappointment! I had wanted to see Hubbe and Ringer in Who Cares?, and I got to see them dance in it several times together last season. Still the highlight of 2002 for me. And seems Time Out NY agrees (that was the one NYCB highlight for them). Interesting to go back and see what came true! -amanda

I was not as into Nutracker this season (though I have three more left-- taking my nephew for the first time and actually paying to see it on Friday!)... but I did see a bunch of 2nd acts, so far. This past Sunday matinee, Ringer and Boal gave an especially splendid performance. One of the NYCB dancers commented to me about how great it was. When Ringer is *on*, she imbues each movement with such feeling and passion. Nothing is a throwaway move for her. Such expression in those neck and shoulders of hers! I did see Kistler do one performnance with Soto. The upside was that the pas de deux was gorgeous. The downside was that she did a lot of flubbing and changing of the choreography in the initial pink tutu solo. That depressed me, as I have been one of those not seeing the decline in her abilities. I didn't see any Sugarplums or Dewdrops I disliked, but I also did sit out a few Act IIs... :-) Somogyi still remains my favorite Dewdrop for the same reasons I loved Ringer's Sugarplum. Time goes more slowly when I watch Somogyi. I have grown to appreciate Taylor more and more (or maybe it is because she has matured... or both). Hers would not be the one Dewdrop I'd want to see (as I prefer the Somogyi approached), but I do feel exhilarated by hers. She does seem to be as light as air, in no way earthbound. I still enjoy Whelan's Dewdrop and Sugarplum, but not much to say there. As far as the rest of the cast of characters... I actually love Edge's Marzipan. She has been perfect in every performance I have seen. Not only articulating each step carefully (and nailing all the hard parts) but adding great charm and grace, as well. I, of course, delight in Ulbricht's performances, but I missed seeing Hall's Tea. He might not have the height (in the jumps!) of Ulbricht, but when he'd do the front attitude, it would be as if he were singing with the orchestra. I didn't get that from any of the Teas I saw this year. Arthurs and Abergel's Coffee drew me in with their sex appeal. I still think Reichlen miscast in this role. SHe might not be that much younger than Arthurs, but she does not yet have the maturity to carry off the part. Not much else left much of an impression. As I said, I was a bit burned out on Nutcracker at the beginnning of this season. I do have a few more left, incl. Sylve on Friday. -amanda

FYI: Korbes had been dancing in the corps of Waltz of the Flowers earlier in the season. -amanda

Ah, thanks, Calliope. Just goes to show how NYCB-centric I am... not bothering to read posts about other companies! -amanda

Carreno did, in the end, not join the company. I don't know the reason. Just that he is, indeed, not there. The news about Tewsley hadn't made its way down to the usually *in the know* volunteers I consult. My mention of his joining the company was the first they had heard of it. -amanda

Don't think this has been mentioned before, but Lorenzo has joined Pennsylvania Ballet in the corps. Jennifer Chipman is in the corps, as well. Alexander Iziliaev is a principal. A journey to Philly when they are there might be in order! -amanda

I'll be at my usually post (volunteering) for both performance on Sunday the 1st. Not too happy about the matinee casting. Delighted to see Somogyi as first cast Dewdrop, even if it's due, in some part, b/c Whelan is out. Is Whelan injured? -amanda

There's a (sold-out) preview of it (and discussion with several of the artists) at the Museum of TV and Radio next week. here's the description from their site: "The depth of male dancing at American Ballet Theatre today is unprecedented in the history of American ballet. The Museum is pleased to preview a new documentary by award-winning producer/director Judy Kinberg, who profiles four of ABT's male stars, exploring how each became passionate about dance. The spotlighted dancers discuss their personal backgrounds and formal training: Jose Manuel Carreno (Cuba), Angel Corella (Spain), Vladimir Malakhov (Ukraine), and Ethan Stiefel (United States). The hour-long documentary culminates with a specially commissioned piece by Mark Morris that features the four dancing together for the first time. " http://www.mtr.org/welcome.htm -amanda

My guess from the quick glimpses i have had on the show's last two airings is Maria Tallchief. But, it's just my educated guess from what I have seen. I was curious, too, about who it definitely was. -amanda

If you look at the NYCB 2003 Winter Season thread there's mention of who is now listed as corps members on the company roster.